Being able to portray yourself well in a video interview is no longer a “nice-to-have” skill.
It’s imperative.
Whether you enjoy being in front of a camera or would rather hide under a rock, video interviewing is nothing new, but it is the wave of the future … and the only way most companies are interviewing right now during the COVID-19 crisis.
Setting yourself up for success during a video interview involves many of the same actions as preparing for an in-person interview. It also requires an additional level of attention to nonverbal details.
What steps can you take to ensure your chances of success during a video interview?
A few days before the intervieW
Step One: Set the Stage
Arranging the physical space around you helps you manage first impressions by removing distractions and keeping the focus on you.
If you have a laptop, find the best room and background for your call. (If you’re using a desktop computer with a monitor, you’ll obviously have less flexibility to move, but just as much control over your environment.) And if you’re using a smartphone, make sure it’s in a stable position in a phone holder; a jiggling image won’t serve you well. Find a chair where you can be comfortable sitting up straight.
How close should you be to the screen? Be sure to focus on your face. Make sure it takes up at least ½ of the screen height, more if you feel comfortable with it.
Check lighting, too. If a window is behind you, you’ll be backlit and your face will be in shadow. Take the time to make any necessary adjustments that help make you clearly visible and as naturally lit as possible.
Next: what’s behind you? It’s your home, but keep your immediate setting simple, organized, and uncluttered. You want to appear as professional at home as you are anywhere else.
Step Two: Prepare
What are three to five things you want to make sure your interviewer knows about you by the end of this interview? Come up with relevant stories or examples that will help you get these points across during your conversation. Jot them down with a few notes and keep nearby to remind you, if that’s helpful.
Prepare and practice your responses to typical interview questions. Learn everything you can about the company, its management team, its culture and to the best of your ability, its current priorities.
A lot of companies are making adjustments in light of the current situation; being aware of these will help you ask the right questions and have informed, transparent conversations with your interviewer.
Step Three: Practice
While you want to come across as your authentic self, an interview (whether in-person or video) is a performance. To do it well, please rehearse!
During a video conversation, frame yourself in the center of your screen and look directly into the camera. Most people tend to stare at the middle of their screen or monitor, assuming it establishes the same eye contact as it would in an actual face-to-face conversation. Unfortunately, it doesn’t.
It’s fine to look down or around you at notes, but do so sparingly — just as you would if you were meeting with your interviewer in person.
You’ll be sitting down during your interview, but practicing your responses while standing in front of a mirror gives you a chance to tweak your nonverbal communication. Watch your expressions as you tell your stories. Notice how many times you say “um.” Remind yourself to smile when appropriate. Aim for a balance of poise and authenticity.
Maybe you can enlist the help of a friend or colleague to play the role of interviewer via FaceTime, Skype, Zoom or any other free video platform you have available. Send them a list of practice questions to ask you.
Request their honest feedback about your posture, tone of voice, facial expressions, gestures and other nonverbal considerations, as well as your answers.
And remember, for more professional feedback and practice, Life Working® offers Mock Interview sessions, complete with video recording for you to cement your learning and increased confidence. Many clients have shared that this helped them nail the interview and get the job.
The day of the interview
Step Four: Dress the Part
Working from home in your athleisurewear may be perfectly acceptable, especially these days. But it’s not acceptable interview attire — unless you’re interviewing for a personal trainer position.
Depending on the role your interviewing for (and who will be conducting your interview), dress in a business-casual manner. Be comfortable, but also be professional.
Step Five: Ensure Privacy
A video interview deserves the same respect and boundaries as an in-person interview. Create an environment that ensures your privacy.
During these extreme circumstances, interviewers will understand that you’re home, potentially with kids, roommates or spouses, but do the best you can to reduce distractions — and noise.
Because you don’t know how long the interview will last, tell others in your house that you need to be undisturbed — until you let them know that the interview is done. The last thing you want is to worry about someone walking up behind you during an interview to ask you what’s for lunch!
If you have a pet who craves your attention, leave them in another room during your interview. Then go hug them once the interview’s done. A nice reward for both of you!
And remember to silence your cell phone. If you still have a landline, silence the ringer or take it off the hook.
Step Six: Relax
It’s natural to feel a little nervous before an interview. But don’t let your anxiety run — or ruin — the show. Calm your nerves with whatever works for you, whether it’s doing a yoga sequence, meditating, reading or listening to soothing music.
Relaxing clears your mind, allowing you to focus your mental energy on your upcoming performance.
Give yourself some cushion time before your interview begins. Granted, you don’t have to worry about traffic or construction making you late, but allow for the unexpected so that you’re comfortably seated, and ready to go at your scheduled interview time.
Being fashionably late to a cocktail party might be your social style, but arriving to an online interview late or harried will make you look careless and disorganized.
Step Seven: Psyche Up!
Now it’s game time. And it’s a high-stakes game.
Just as professional athletes and entertainers mentally prepare for their performance, take a few moments to charge your emotional energy.
Social psychologist Amy Cuddy asserts that assuming a “power pose” can actually change your physiology, making you feel stronger and more confident. It almost sounds too simple to be true, but her research provides evidence that striking this simple pose before a stressful situation (meeting, interview, etc.) means you’ll enter the room and behave more confidently because you feel more confident.
Many of our clients we’ve shared this with have confirmed that it worked for them.
Or put on some headphones and blast your favorite power song. Regardless of your age or musical taste, I’m willing to bet you can think of at least one song that puts a smile on your face, gets your heart pumping, and makes you feel like a superhero. Play that song!
Step Eight: Give It Your All
You’ve prepared and you’ve practiced. Now it’s time to heed the age-old advice to try your hardest. To be yourself. And to do your best.
Engage in an authentic, professional conversation with your interviewer. Give thoughtful and concise answers to the interviewer’s questions.
And be sure to have questions of your own. You will probably be asked if you do, if not during the interview, as it’s ending. Make sure you have a few well-prepared questions about the position, the way the team functions best, the anticipated general hiring timeline, and how you can best help them achieve their goals right away.
This will help you leave a lasting impression that’s as positive as the first. And yes. You can do this!
First, you have to get the interview.
Look as impressive in writing as you really are. Need help?
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